The Good, The Bad and The Chinese

Another long weekend is done. I just got back home from the Monday teachers’ meeting and have one class tonight before my first two days off in a row since coming to Wuxi. Tomorrow I’ll be going to Suzhou to visit Maria and hopefully take a lot of pictures. My only hope is that the weather warms up a bit by then. That and I hope that I can successfully get to the correct place by train.

It has now been a month since my arrival in Wuxi. So far my time in China has been a mix of good, bad and other. Most of the experiences have been good. I’m enjoying teaching for the most part. Most of my classes are full of good students. I particularly enjoy my Sunday classes. On Sundays I start with a low level class of 8-10 year olds that are both well behaved and eager to learn. Following that, I have group of 10-11 year olds that are at a slightly higher level. There are only 7 of them in that class and they are completely adorable. The boys, like all boys that age have a lot of energy, but for the most part they restrain themselves. The girls are a bit quieter. One in particular is a bit smaller than the others and quite a little cutie. She looks like the type of little girl that would be chosen to look cute in commercials for kids toys or McDonalds. Yesterday we studied activities in class and I had them each draw their favorite activity. After class they each decided to give me their picture. Some of them are quite talented. I also found out that in addition to my adult class on Mondays, I’ll be teaching a business English class at the new center on Thursdays.

Also on the good side are some of the places I’ve gone and people I’ve met so far. Jonny another teacher who started about the same time I did and I have taken the opportunity to explore some of the city together. We checked out Lake Taihu, a couple malls and markets, as well as a few local ex-pat bars. One in particular, called Envy has become a regular spot on evenings that are not followed by an early morning. As a result of their one pool table a few pretty good players, my pool game has improved quite a bit. I am still quite a ways away from the best pool of my life, but I’m good enough to split most best of three games 2-1. The drinks aren’t exactly cheap. A Heineken costs about 25 RMB or $4, but a shot of tequila is only 15RMB. More importantly the owner and staff are good people.

Like everything in life, there are downsides to my situation here. Working for a foreign language school can be hard work. I teach many different ages and levels and just last week started teaching off site at grade school and middle school twice a week. The classes do require quite a bit of prep time as well. But working a long week is nothing new to me. One downside though is that because the school is a business, we have little or no recourse against disruptive students. In one class in particular on Saturdays I have two boys who are quite disruptive. Unfortunately the nature of Chinese society, the one Child policy and preferential treatment of boys does produce some quite spoiled children.

Friday was also my first payday. The paycheck was a bit smaller than I’d hoped because it was prorated for the first month, included the 1000RMB loan the school gave me when I first arrived and an incredible high electric bill. I believe I have mentioned before the insufficient ability of the wall-mounted heating unit. As a result I often run it when I get home from work at night until the morning, in the vain hope that my apartment will get warm. Unfortunately the desire to be warm cost me. My bill was nearly 500 RMB or about $80, which is two or three times what most of my colleagues think it should have been. So I’ve decided to use it more sparingly this month in an attempt to evaluate whether or not the bill changes. If there is little or no change next month I’ll be requesting an actual copy of the statement. You see, the way the school pays is quite different here. First they put your entire salary in front of you and have you count it. Then they give you a list of all the charges they pay for you, including rent, electricity water etc. You then have to pay them back that money and you can keep the rest. I assume it is an attempt to seem more transparent, but in actuality you never see the actual bills or rental contract to know the exact amount that they paid.

My paycheck was however, enough to cover a 6 month membership to a local gym. The membership cost me 800 RMB, which isn’t a bad price especially considering that I hope it will mean that I spend less time at the bar, so I won’t be spending my money there. I was also able to buy a few cooking supplies and some groceries, so that should help cut down on expenses too. I hope starting next month to be able to put away some money every payday. I’m still looking into buying a new bed set and a thicker pillow for my bed, but that can wait for the time being.

This week should be a good one. Tomorrow I’ll be heading to Suzhou and back. On Wednesday I plan to check out a museum with my coworker Jonny who also has the day off and I’ve been dinner with two other coworkers who are dating. Anelie, who is a native of the Philippines, will be cooking Filipino food. Thursday I start me new business class and then the weekend starts all over again. That is it for me. Below I’ve included a picture of my apartment from my bed, for those who were wondering. I just got back from shopping so I didn’t tidy up before snapping the picture, so yes that is my coat on the sofa and some snacks on the table! Next to the water cooler, not shown in the picture is a desk and a closet.